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Cash and Curry
Detailed sypnosis Attending a dinner and dance at the Camberwell Chamber of Trade, Del Boy meets and befriends an Indian man named Vimmal Malik. Outside, Del and Rodney inadvertently become involved in a dispute with a Mr. Rahn, who appears to have a long standing grudge against Malik. Rahn's heavy is set upon Del and Malik after the situation escalates, only to be floored by Del. Further investigation causes Del and Rodney to discover that Malik and Rahn are from rival families, each of whom makes claim to an ancient statue, of the Hindu God Kubera, of great sentimental and financial value. Malik has the statue, but Rahn wants it and informs Del that he is prepared to pay £4,000 for it. He is unable to make such an offer directly however, due to the caste system preventing him from speaking to Malik directly. Sensing an opportunity to profit, Del agrees to act as a go-between for Rahn. Del speaks to Malik, informing him that Rahn is prepared to pay £2,000, with his intention being to keep the other £2,000 for himself. Malik eventually accepts the offer, but is unwilling to hand over the statue before receiving the cash. A problem emerges when it becomes clear that Rahn is equally unwilling to handover the money before receiving the statue. Rodney at this point attempts to convince Del to let the deal go, but Del is unrelenting and decides to raise the £2,000 himself by selling off unwanted or unneeded items from the flat. Eventually he succeeds in convincing Rodney to go along with the plan. The money is duly raised and paid to Malik, and the statue handed over. When Del Boy and Rodney go to the restaurant Rahn supposedly owns, however, they find that he is gone - and that he does not own the restaurant and never did. The waiter there, who is the real owner of the restaurant, informs him that the cheque provided bounced, and that enquiries as to his accommodation revealed Rahn had left there as well, leaving three weeks rent unpaid. Adding to the Trotter brothers' woes, the owner examines the statue and reveals that they cost just £17 on Portobello Road. Realising the extent of their loss, and that they cannot report the pair to the police, Del and Rodney leave the restaurant dejected and without options. Rodney suggests drowning their sorrows in a curry house, and Del angrily throws the statue at Rodney. Meanwhile, Malik and Rahn joke to each other about the stupidity of the Trotter brothers in falling for the con, and it emerges that they have successfully carried it out in various other locations (Cardiff, Bristol, Southampton, and North and South London), as they travel to their next destination to try it again. Stats Season: 1 Writer: John Sullivan Director: Martin Shardlow Producer: Ray Butt Duration: 30 minutes Airdate: September 22, 1981 Audience: 7.3 million Featured characters *Del Boy *Rodney *Mr. Rahn *Vimmal Malik Other notes Story arc *This is the first episode Del calls Rodney a plonker. Episode concept *The idea for the script was based purely on the name of the episode "Cash and Curry", from that the script was devised. Miscellaneous trivia *This was the only episode where we see the Vauxhall Velox. The Capri Ghia (which wouldn't appear until "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Uncle") replaced this very later in the series as Del Boy's personal car. *This was the only episode of the sitcom filmed during Lennard Pearce's lifetime in which Grandad does not make an appearance. It is also the first of only three episodes of Only Fools and Horses in which the interior of the Trotters' flat is not seen. The other two are "Who's a Pretty Boy?" from Season 3, and "The Longest Night" from Season 5. *The music at the beginning of the episode when Rodney sees Del Boy's Vauxhall Velox in the car park was very different from the music used in future episodes. DVD cuts and edits *The song that is played during the sales montage is Money by Pink Floyd. The DVD Region 2 version has a different music track due to contractual reasons by the BBC. Previous episode: Go West Young Man Next episode: The Second Time Around Cash and Curry